Winter Surprises
by articcat621
Summary: Rabastan and Hermione take advantage of the freshly fallen snow.


**A/N:** This was originally written for the Winter Exchange at RarePairShorts on LJ. I hope everyone enjoys.

 **Disclaimer:** Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended

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 _Winter Surprises_

Hermione was carefully sprinkling sugar upon her cookies when a pair of hands grasped her hips, startling her. She jumped, turning around and quickly smacking Rabastan on the chest when she saw his goofy grin. "Don't do that!" she scolded him.

Rabastan smirked, a small chuckle escaping his lips as he leant down and kissed her on the nose. "I couldn't resist," he said affectionately. "Are you free to take a break?"

"I suppose," Hermione replied. "We've got two hours before we're due at Harry's for the Christmas party."

"Will you come outside with me? It looks so nice with the fresh snow that I thought we could go for a short walk." Rabastan smiled at her once making and Hermione found herself going weak in the knees.

"That sounds wonderful." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. "Let me just get my things." Summoning her jacket, she put it on, along with a scarf, hat, and gloves. Taking Rabastan's hand, she allowed him to lead her outside.

The two walked along the street, holding hands tightly as they went. Hermione enjoyed the breath of fresh air as they observed the various houses decorated for the holidays. She squeezed Rabastan's hand, smiling as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye.  
As they walked, she reflected upon her relationship with Rabastan and was grateful that she had him in her life. The two had grown close when he had been assigned 'community service' hours after serving his five-year term in Azkaban. As he had not committed any truly heinous crimes, he had been able to avoid a life-long sentence in the prison. Rabastan worked at the used book shoppe she had opened in Hogsmeade. Two years later, and she couldn't be happier.

"The snow is beautiful," Hermione commented as they walked, the cold starting to nip at her nose.

"Not as beautiful as you are," Rabastan replied, a smirk on his face. He stopped, tugging her hand slightly as he pulled her into his arms. "I love you," he murmured, lowering his head and capturing her lips in a searing kiss.

Hermione moaned, wrapping her arms around his neck as she pulled him closer. She pressed up against him, whispering, "Take me home."

Rabastan, checking that the coast was clear, whispered a spell that caused the snow around them to blow upwards, hiding them. He turned on the spot, Apparating them to their backyard. Once there, he resumed kissing her, his lips nipping at her mouth, neck, every inch of skin that was available.

"Rabastan," Hermione sighed, warmth spreading throughout her body. She let out a shriek as Rabastan ended the kiss without warning and pushed her into the snow. "What was that for!" she shouted, struggling to sit upright in the snow.

His answer was a snowball to her chest. He smirked, a laugh threatening to bubble out.

"That's it, you're on!" Hermione declared, standing up. She quickly packed a snowball and flung it at him, grinning victoriously when it hit him square in the face.

"Oh, you witch!" he shouted, laughing. He grasped a handful of snow.

Within moments, the air was full of snowballs flying back and forth. Rabastan couldn't stop laughing and neither could Hermione. She let out a whoop of victory as Rabastan sank to one knee.

"I win!" she shouted with glee, laughing as she approached him. "I beat you, Rab."

"That you did, my love," Rabastan said warmly, smiling up into her warm, brown eyes. "Come here." He held his hand out to her.

Hermione took his hand and stepped closer. She looked down at Rabastan, being thankful once more for having him in her life.

"Hermione Jean Granger, I love you more and more every day," Rabastan began.

"I love you too," Hermione replied, unable to stop smiling.

"I'm a lucky wizard to have met you, and even luckier to have spent the past few years with you by my side."

"Rabastan," she whispered, tears filling her eyes as she watched him reach into his back pocket and pull out a small, black box.

"Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" Rabastan asked, opening the box to reveal a solitaire diamond ring.

Hermione felt her heart thump wildly in her chest. "I… Yes!" she cried, sniffling and she brushed away the tears of happiness. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!"

Rabastan grinned, taking her hand and slipping off her glove. He slid the ring onto her finger, the magic automatically sizing it to fit her perfectly. "I love you." He stood, wrapping his arms around her as he kissed her.

"Rabastan, I love you so much," Hermione gushed happily. "Take me inside, please. We've still got some time before we're due at Harry's, and I want to spend it celebrating."

"Whatever my witch wants," Rabastan promised. He kissed her chastely before picking her up and tossing her over his shoulder. Hermione let out a shriek of excitement as he carried her inside, where they spent the remainder of the afternoon entwined in passionate embraces.


End file.
